Friday, August 29, 2008
[Computers :: Hardware] Laptop Screen Going Blank
I was helping another person in the Windows newsgroup who was comlpaining that their laptop’s screen goes blank after 30-60 minutes and they have to open and close the lid and press the power button to get it back. My advice:
It could be caused by overheating, dust, or maybe a loose connection. Try holding the laptop up, with the display’s screen facing the ground. Gently shake it a bit and see if the screen goes blank. If it does, then that’s your problem; it’s not a laptop, it’s an Etch-a-Sketch.
[Transportation :: Bus] To Move or Not to Move; That is the Question
This is a follow-up to When to Pull the Cord.
As social as people like to think of the human race, we also like our space. Aside from public bathrooms, the bus is one place where this is very evident.
What happens when you get on a bus and there are plenty of seats free? You sit where you want. What do you do when there are few seats free? You sit wherever you can. More often than not, unless they are getting on the bus with a friend, most people will put a seat or two between themselves and the next person, creating a buffer, personal space (even with a friend, a lot of people make a buffer). Only when there isn’t enough space will people usually sit immediately next to someone else.
The question then becomes, what happens when some people get off and seats free up? Do you get up and go get your own seat or do you stay next to the person you sat next to earlier? What would the person you’re sitting next to think if you do? If you don’t?
If you move, the person may be happy to get their own space again. Or the may feel insulted that you felt you needed to move, perhaps because you think they smell or something.
If you don’t move, they may be upset that they are still being crowded when there is space available. Or maybe they are relieved that you don’t find them offensive, and perhaps even that other people will think that there must be something appealing about them to keep you sitting next to them when there are now free seats.
No matter what you choose, there will be some people who will view it as good, and some people who will view it as bad (and some people who will view it in ways that normal minds cannot even conceive of). In the end it more or less balances out, so there is no mathematical solution, and you are better off just doing whatever you prefer if the person does not give you an indication of their preference.
As social as people like to think of the human race, we also like our space. Aside from public bathrooms, the bus is one place where this is very evident.
What happens when you get on a bus and there are plenty of seats free? You sit where you want. What do you do when there are few seats free? You sit wherever you can. More often than not, unless they are getting on the bus with a friend, most people will put a seat or two between themselves and the next person, creating a buffer, personal space (even with a friend, a lot of people make a buffer). Only when there isn’t enough space will people usually sit immediately next to someone else.
The question then becomes, what happens when some people get off and seats free up? Do you get up and go get your own seat or do you stay next to the person you sat next to earlier? What would the person you’re sitting next to think if you do? If you don’t?
If you move, the person may be happy to get their own space again. Or the may feel insulted that you felt you needed to move, perhaps because you think they smell or something.
If you don’t move, they may be upset that they are still being crowded when there is space available. Or maybe they are relieved that you don’t find them offensive, and perhaps even that other people will think that there must be something appealing about them to keep you sitting next to them when there are now free seats.
No matter what you choose, there will be some people who will view it as good, and some people who will view it as bad (and some people who will view it in ways that normal minds cannot even conceive of). In the end it more or less balances out, so there is no mathematical solution, and you are better off just doing whatever you prefer if the person does not give you an indication of their preference.
[Computers :: OS] Super-Duper Windows Fix
The super-duper in the title refers to the magnitude of this Windows fix rather than its keenness.
This command will re-register with Windows every dll, ocx, ax, and acm file on the system drive. Alternately,
Also, this is not exactly a cure-all. While it may indeed fix some (or even a lot) of problems, it also has a tendancy to reset a lot of settings. Most files, when they register with the system, will perform an initialization routine that usually sets variables, files, registry entries and such to the preset default, thus wiping out any changes you’ve made. This may actually be the required step to fix something you messed up, but only if you know which file needs to be re-registered; this super-duper one will reset everything.
for /R %systemdrive% %i in (*.dll *.ocx *.ax *.acm) do (regsvr32 /s "%i" & regsvr32 /s /i "%i")This command will re-register with Windows every dll, ocx, ax, and acm file on the system drive. Alternately,
%systemdrive% could be replaced with %systemroot% or %systemroot%\system32 to only re-register those files in the Windows (or Windows\System32) directory and its subfolders, and ignore those in Program Files, etc. (of course those may in actuality be the problem). You could also add other self-registering filetypes (a few EXEs have actually been known to self-register).Also, this is not exactly a cure-all. While it may indeed fix some (or even a lot) of problems, it also has a tendancy to reset a lot of settings. Most files, when they register with the system, will perform an initialization routine that usually sets variables, files, registry entries and such to the preset default, thus wiping out any changes you’ve made. This may actually be the required step to fix something you messed up, but only if you know which file needs to be re-registered; this super-duper one will reset everything.
